LOWELL, Mass. – UMass Lowell senior goaltender Kevin Boyle (Manalapan, N.J.,) and junior forward Joe Gambardella (Staten Island, N.Y.) who have played key roles for the no. 8 ranked UMass Lowell hockey team will be honored Thursday at the annual Hockey East awards banquet.

Boyle was named the Stop It Goaltending Champion and the winner of the Army ROTC Three Stars Award. The goaltender was among the conference and national leaders in almost all goaltending categories. With a 22-8-5 record Boyle had a miniscule league best 1.62 GAA in conference play. He had .941 save percentage in Hockey East games.

Boyle's name could be found among the post-game three stars on a regular basis and earned the game's first star on ten occassions. The senior picked up a his school single season record seventh shutout last Saturday as UMass Lowell eliminated Boston University, 5-0, in the Hockey East Tournament quarterfinals.

Gambardella is third on the River Hawks in scoring with eight goals and 33 points. His 25 assists leads the team. In 36 games, Gambardella has been whistled for a penalty just once. He is the team leader with a plus-18 rating. He has been plus or even in 31 of 36 games.  The center iceman is being honored with the Len Ceglarski Sportsmanship Award.

The two River Hawks and other award winners will be recognized Thursday night at the annual Hockey East awards banquet at the Royal Sonesta Hotel in Cambridge, Mass.

The No. 4 seeded UMass Lowell Hockey team will face No. 2 seed Providence College in the Hockey East semifinals at the TD Garden on Friday, March 18th at 5 p.m. in Boston. This will be the River Hawks 17th appearance at the Hockey East Tournament Championship Weekend and the fourth consecutive year that they have played in the semifinals. The River Hawks are trying to become just the fourth team to earn a spot in the Championship Game in at least four straight seasons.